Meeting Alice Platt
by Moon Princess of the Dragon
Summary: Eveyln Danver's and Jonathan Platt have always been friends. But once they were lovers. They reunite after Caleb's fathers death and Caleb meets Alice Platt, the mysterious girl. ReidxOC or TylerxOC
1. Married?

"What?! You're getting married? To who? DAD THIS SUCKS!" I yelled into his ear for the hundredth time that day. No wonder he had been acting really weird that entire week.

"How many times do I have to explain. I met Evelyn Lennox when we were fifteen years old. Then she got married to some other guy, had a kid, the husband died and now she's home free. I saw her last weekend and we hit it off. She just seemed so lonely. So I thought, 'what the hell, why not?' and asked the question. Simple" He replied absently.

I clenched my jaw and continued packing up my things. I was really, really, pissed off.

My father, the adorable soul he is, fell in love so quickly it was ridiculous. So far, after my mother died of course, he had been married three times.

Since I can remember, everyone he has ever married have been absolute wackjobs.

First there was Leanne Richard, who I was sure had some form of A.D.D. Then there was Matilda Carter, who insisted that I call her Missy for some reason and always had conversations with herself when she thought no-one was looking. And lastly there was Bella Ferrera. She was the scariest of them all. She wasn't wacky, she was plain psychotic. One time, when she forced me to call her my mother, and I refused, she brandished a kitchen knife at me and chased me around the house with it. Lucky for her, I had the phone in my hand. The police were there within seconds.

Needless to say, I was hoping, praying, that this marriage would be some form of normal.

Though I was certain it wasn't going to be.


	2. Meet the Family

Upon arriving in Ipswich I felt happy. The place was beautiful. Much better than Newport. While I loved the beach, I hated the heat and the sunny weather. I was so not an outdoors kid, unless there was rain or lightning. You could say I was an oddball. I had a large group of friends, and every single one of them thought I was weird. Shame that I didn't really give a damn.

"Dad, are you sure my car is going to be okay? I love that car and if anything happens to it, I will quite literally walk off a cliff." I asked worried. My beloved car was the only thing that I truly loved in my life. Apart from my daddy of course.

"Yes baby, you're car is going to be just fine. Look we're here." He said pulling into a long driveway. I gasped as he stopped the car in front of a mansion.

The Danvers Manor it was called. You got that right.

I smiled in spite of myself.

I stepped out of the car and giggled. It was amazing. Okay, so even if this woman was crazy and threatened to kill me I wouldn't care. This house was enough to make any girl happy.

The front door swung open, and out stepped a tall dark haired woman. She wore a black skirt suit and black sensible heels. I just stared. She looked normal. No signs of crazy pink hair, overly tanned orange skin, no fake blonde hair, no ridiculous 'Juicy Couture' outfits or fake boobs. Just natural beauty.

I sighed.

"You must be Alice. Very pleased to meet you." She said simply, walking up to greet me. She had a kind smile on her face, but she reeked of Whiskey.

Ah-ha.

The Flaw.

"I hope you'll find our home accommodating. Now I hope you don't find me not hugging you as rude, I just think it could be very odd for you to hug someone you don't know very well." She said smiling.

I laughed. "No, no it's fine. I'm used to it really."

With that, "Oh well," she hugged me, "Welcome to our home".

It was a nice hug, very motherly. I immediately liked this woman.

"Jonathan?" she said looking past me to my father, "Gorman will get you're bags and send them to your rooms. Come and I'll show you around the house".

As we entered the foyer, I was astounded. The place was lavish with paintings and furniture, ornaments and statues everywhere. It was beautiful. Like a palace.

"I hope you don't mind, but we have company. I wasn't expecting you two until tomorrow." She said as she led my father and me into the Drawing Room.

At least that is what it said on the wall.

I looked into the room, and noticed four boys there, as well as two girls.

Who were they?

"Jonathan, Alice, I want you to meet my son Caleb." Evelyn stated.

"Huh? What the f-" I started to say but my father cut me off. The blonde boy standing near the fireplace snickered and the boy with long hair covered his mouth. I cleared my throat.

"Caleb, was it? Nice to meet you," my father said awkwardly. I was confused, as to which one was Caleb. Apparently, he was too.

Then the tallest boy, with golden skin and jet-black hair and brown eyes stepped forward and shook my father's hand. He then turned to meet my strong gaze and smiled crookedly. He was kind of hot. Ew that could be weird.

"Alice? Pleasure to meet you. Guess I better show you around."

I nodded, bewildered by this odd show of formality and awkwardness.

"Ehem," someone in the background cleared their throat.

"Oh right, uh, this my gang. Sarah Wenham, my girlfriend, Pogue Parry and Kate Tunney, Reid Garwin and Tyler Simms." Caleb said introducing me to his friends. They all smiled and waved, though the blonde one, Reid, winked.

I grimaced, and followed Caleb out of the room.

After a long minute of silence, I piped up, "So is this as weird for you as it is for me?".

"Definitely. Mother never mentioned you. And to be quite honest, she only told me she was getting remarried last week. Apparently they have history." He stated matter-of-factly.

"Yes. Met when they were fifteen. Fell in love or so dad says. Whatever. As long as he's happy, I'm happy."

He stopped and looked at me. "You don't really seem emotional about this."

"Should I be?"

"Well you're a girl. No crying, and no excitement. Just a happy medium. Usually it's one way or another." He said, blinking.

I snorted. "Well I have been through this process countless times before. I know the drill. Besides, your mother seems extremely normal compared to the other 'Brides' I've had to deal with, so I am happy on the inside." I stated.

We had climbed the stairs and were walking down a long hallway. He stopped in front of two large red doors.

He laughed. "Well, now that this has been sufficiently uncomfortable, I'll leave you to unpack. Perhaps tomorrow I'll show you around, once you feel more at home." He said. Such a nice kid.

"Okay thanks." I said pushing one door open.

"Oh and Alice?"

"Yeah?"

"Maybe tomorrow, you and I, and the gang should hang out. You know, get to know each other". He said hesitantly.

"Sounds great," I replied facing him and flashing a smile. He grinned.

After unpacking, I realized none of my things suited this room. It was all about elegance. While I was no trash bag, I had my own creativeness to think of. There just didn't seem anywhere to put my large C.D collection, or my stereo, television, Rolling Stones or The Crow posters, my animal print beanbag or the black and white coffee table. My notice board with random pictures from magazines, my adorable black can-can style lamp and statue of a cherub seemed so out of place.

After small consideration, I figured that it would have to look strange. I couldn't leave the poster of Brandon Lee in my suitcase. The room would just have to look kooky.

After adjusting everything, I laid out on the enormous king sized four-poster bed. I had to admit, my room looked pretty cool.

I began to giggle.

In addition to my huge room, that was probably the size of the lounge room we had in our last house, I had my own ensuite and a Walk-in-Robe. Every girls dream.

There was a knock at my door, and my father immediately walked in.

"I'm off to bed," I wrinkled my nose, "You have a dirty mind. By myself. Goodnight sweetheart. I hope you like it here."

"I do," I said smiling "G'Night Dad."


	3. Good Morning!

I awoke to the harsh sunlight, if you could call it that, at seven in the morning. I glanced at my phone. Yep, 7.00AM. It was raining outside. At least that was something.

"Great," I mumbled out loud, closing my eyes. I was not a morning person. I had forgotten to close the curtains last night, I was too interested in watching the moon through the rain.

There was a loud knock at my door, and I literally fell out of bed.

"RISE AND SHINE!" a loud voice cried, and both doors swung open.

As I regained my composure, I came face to face with the blonde boy, Reid. I stood to my full height, 5'9, and glared at the boy standing in front of me.

"What the hell are you doing in my room, let alone my house, THIS DAMN HOUR OF THE MORNING?!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, hoping my father would hear.

Instead, Caleb walked through the doors.

"Dude! I said go in and check on her, not go in and wake her. Fool" He said slapping Reid upside the head.

He moved to my side and handed me my doona.

I grabbed the doona from Caleb's hands to cover myself modestly. I slept in a small tank top and frilly shorts. I liked to feel sexy while I was sleeping.

Reid found my sleeping arrangements rather amusing and looked at me knowingly.

I stared at him intently, saw the look of interest in his face and narrowed my eyes, disgusted.

"Get out of my room! What are you still doing here you perverted bastard. I'm in my UNDERWEAR FOR PETE'S SAKE! GET OUT DAMMIT!" I started screaming.

Caleb stood bewildered next to me, but Reid just laughed, "Dude you sister is a crazy bitch."

As promptly as he came in, he left.

I sighed my relief.

Caleb looked up from the ground, "I'm really sorry. He's…a … a-" He stumbled for the word.

"A guy?" I finished for him.

"That's probably the best way to describe it." He said taking a breath.

"I'm not offended. It's kind of funny actually. It's just so early in the morning and I'm am not a morning person. He's kind of a moron, isn't he?" I rambled on. The last part just slipped out.

To my surprise, he laughed. "I see you and I are going to get along just fine."

He said, placing an arm around my shoulders. I laughed. It felt nice to have a brotherly figure in my life. Then Caleb remembered that I was wearing less than usual and shrugged his arm off and hurried towards the door.

"Um, can you be ready in an hour? We are all going for a picnic, down to the Dells. It will be fun." He said almost pleading. Poor kid. He looked sad.

I nodded, and turned toward my bathroom. "Caleb? Anytime you need to talk, I'm here." I said oddly, but smiled.

He nodded and closed the door behind him.

"Alice? Hi, uh, Sarah. Sorry to barge in on you like this, but Ca- your brother was wondering if you would be ready soon." Sarah asked timidly from the bathroom doorway.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm just deciding on an outfit." I said absently, flicking my hands.

I ran to my wardrobe, selected a few things, and held them up for confirmation.

"I like the red pants and black top. Wear flats. The white checkered ones. Ooh they are cute." She said after helping me.

I slipped on the clothes right in front of her. No need to be modest.

After both Caleb and Reid, the sneaky bastard, had seen me in lingerie, I figured that any opportunity to flash my body was standard.

Hell, I should do a striptease in front of the whole school, if the occasion should ever arise.

"Okay, let's go." I said grabbing my keys.

Once outside, I noticed my gorgeous car had been delivered.

It seemed in sumptuous condition.

"I had Gorman wash it for you. Your father mentioned that you were very fond of it." Caleb said, coming behind me.

I smiled at him, gratefully.

"Thanks. I do adore this car more than any other of my prized possessions."

You see it was my mother's car; she had had it since she was sixteen. After her death, dad had it stored away until I could drive. I named her Pixie. She was a 1967, first generation model orange-with-black-stripes convertible Chevrolet Camaro.

"Nice car," Reid commented, who was circling Pixie like a shark with prey.

I brightened, "Want to drive with me to the picnic?" I asked happily. He nodded.

Before I walked to my car, Caleb held my arm.

"Hey, be careful. With Reid you know-"

"Oh Caleb, I don't drive like a maniac, even if Pixie does inspire speed." I said whole-heartedly.

"That's not what I meant Chica. I mean watch out for yourself. Reid is very in tune with his inner man and he is very seductive to the female kind." He said his eyes hardening.

"Dude, take a chill pill. I like to keep within my species."

He laughed at this.

"Seriously, Caleb. The boy is harmless. Besides what can he do while riding in the passenger seat of a fast moving vehicle?"

Apparently, a lot.


	4. Picnic's and Biker Boyz

Reid chatted the entire way about sports cars, and I was mildly interested. He commented on how well I drove for a girl before finally, I flipped him the finger and told him to shut up.

"AHA! So you do crack. I knew it wouldn't be before too long." He said triumphantly.

"What the hell are you talking about? You were annoying me with your 'Me Joe, You Jane' Macho Bullshit. Do you ever stop talking about yourself?" I asked. I pretty much knew the answer. There it was.

The smirk. "Rarely."

Thankfully, by this point we had reached the Dells and Tyler's Hummer could be seen clearly through the sheen of rain.

"Civilisation!" I yelled to no-one in particular, as I fell in place beside Caleb and Sarah.

"Reid chew your ear off about whole 'women can't drive' theory?" I voice asked me to my left.

I glanced up. Gorgeous aqua eyes dazzled my gaze.

"Tyler right? Yeah. He thinks very highly of himself doesn't he?" I said pointedly.

He grinned. "Yup."

"You'll get used to it. So you going to Spencer then I suppose?" He asked.

"You supposed right. Dad thought it was best that I come down here during the break to meet some people, and my new step-brother, before I dove into a new school head on. I think it was good idea." I replied.

"Well put it this way," Tyler said turning towards me and walking backwards, "A lot of girls will be wishing they were in your shoes when we start back". He winked.

I wasn't entirely sure what he meant, but I could take a guess.

Boys these days.

We settled down the picnic rug and opened up the basket full of delicious looking food. I was starving. Despite it only being nine o'clock, there were all sorts of treats.

I glowed at the prospect of shoveling lots of food into my mouth, I practically drooled over everything.

Pogue laughed at me.

"What?" I asked innocently. Kate burst out laughing.

"Oh yeah, right, Sorry," I said sheepishly realizing what they were laughing at.

"You don't have to apologize," Pogue said still laughing.

"Well," I said a little defensively, "when you're as tall as I am, you get hungry very easily and it takes a lot of hard work and time to fill this stomach," I indicated my stomach.

"I'm sorry what stomach?" Sarah said sarcastically pretending to search for my flat stomach.

"Shut up, and eat," I said grinning.

With the picnic being successful, and myself feeling very much apart of the group, I headed towards my car satisfied.

"Hey Alice," Caleb's voice rung out clear, reverberating through the woods.

"Yo"

"We're all going to Nicky's tonight, did you want to come? It will be good for you to meet some other people from school." He said.

"What the hell is Nicky's? A bar I'm guessing." I stated stupidly.

"Bingo. I'm leaving at 8." I nodded.

"Wait, where are you going now?" I asked, registering that he wasn't returning home just yet.

"Oh Sarah and I are going to see a movie."

"Ah. Well have fun. I'll see you later."

"Alice! It's a theme party tonight. A character from a movie," he yelled from his convertible. His voice lowered "Dress up kiddo or I leave you behind," he said mock-menacingly.

"Okay, Darth Vader."

I sat in my room for what seemed like an hour before I realized I had to find something to wear. I glanced around my room for inspiration.

"Uh-hah!" I said aloud and walked over to my samurai sword placed on the fireplace mantle.

It was beautifully crafted, not a proper weapon, more for show.

My father had brought it back with him after a business trip to Tokyo.

He knew that I adored anything Japanese seeing that my own mother herself was half Japanese and half Australian.

I didn't look Japanese however, much to my dismay. The only thing remaining of my heritage was my naturally jet-black hair.

It was perfect. I rummaged through my Oak Treasure Chest and found the blonde wig I had used a couple of Halloweens back. Grabbing my keys, I asked Evelyn for directions into the 'city' of Ipswich and found a park immediately.

There were quite a lot of stores for such a small community. I stopped in front of the place I was looking for and grinned.

As I entered, the man at the counter looked up. He was in his late twenty's, with light brown hair cut into a mohawk, wearing a 'Motorhead' t-shirt, tattoo's every which way up his arms and some even poking out of his neck. "Can I help you?" He asked, obviously interested.

Probably not every day that a girl comes into a shop called 'The Dragon Tattoo'. The store was large, accommodating for a tattoo parlor, heavy metal band t-shirts, gothic jewellery and clothing and of course motorbike outfits.

I just smiled and headed straight for the isle with the leather jumpsuits.

"I don't think we have any suits for girls." The man said, appearing at my side.

He then looked me up and down, taking in my full height,

"Perhaps you'll fit into a small men's size though, for how tall you are."

I stood just two inches below him.

I smiled lazily and selected a red full piece that sported a black dragon on the back and black stripes down either side of the legs.

"Perfect" I said holding it up.

"I'll grab this one thanks"

The man beamed, and introduced himself as Justin. He looked excited.

"Your probably the first woman I've known to ride a bike around here." He said

"Oh no, don't get your hopes up buddy. I don't own a bike, nor do I ride one. I'm more of a car person. Actually, this purchase," I said indicating the outfit, "Is for a party tonight. It's a dress up party held at Nicky's bar, and you can go as a character from a movie. I chose The Bride. You know, Uma Thurman from Kill Bill."

He nodded in recognition. "Very cool. One of my favourite movies."

"Mine too. I even have a sword at home, so it's perfect."

"Wow. I'm going tonight too. So I'll probably see you there." He said smiling.

Everybody in this town was so nice. They wouldn't last a minute in Newport.

"Awesome, Justin," I said grabbing the bag that held the costume in question, "Oh and by the way, the names Alice." I said winking and walking out.

I could feel his eyes on my butt.

Could not help himself.


	5. The Princess or The Bride?

"Knock knock" Caleb said entering into my room.

"Hey Caleb!" I said excitedly running from the bathroom.

"Veeery nice chicky. What is it? Jackie Chan? Dead Or Alive?" He asked trying to guess.

"Nooo," I wailed, "Silly Rabbit, I'm Uma Thurman from Kill Bill. The Bride."

"Oh yeah!" He said smiling, "Awesome movie that one. Okay well you ready?"

"Sure am. Ooops, my wig." I said and disappeared.

I returned minutes later as a blonde bombshell in a red biker suit holding a samurai sword. I felt unstoppable.

"Okay Uma, let's go"

We entered Nicky's bar and immediately turned heads. I felt heat rise from my chest to my cheeks, but I ignored it and followed Caleb to where his friends sat.

Caleb was dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow, Sarah as Sandy from Grease.

Kate was dressed as Tinkerbell, Pogue as Peter Pan, in that adorable 'couple's, we must match' way.

Reid was Vincent Vega a.k.a John Travolta from Pulp Fiction sporting a black wig, and suit, and Tyler I must say was my personal favourite.

He was dressed all in black. Tight black pants, black t-shirt and hand straps, his brown hair gelled to perfection to sit across his face and long, and the white and black Goth make-up of the Crow. I applauded all of them.

"Tyler, yours by far is the best." I said happily.

Everyone groaned. "Don't be offended guys, yours are all great, but The Crow is my fav movie, so Ty takes the cake." I grinned mischievously.

"So what are you suppose to be?" Sarah asked intrigued.

"Uma Thurman from Kill Bill"

Everyone turned to look at the newcomer who spoke, including myself.

"Oh Justin, hi." I said waving to him.

"Hey yourself" He said smiling and leaned in to whisper in my ear, "You look great".

I giggled.

"Did I miss something" Reid asked in the background.

"Everyone, this is Justin, I met him earlier today when I was purchasing my outfit."

Justin grinned and waved. He was dressed as Arnie from the Terminator. He looked pretty good too. I smiled earnestly at what I had discovered. Not bad for finding myself three dateable men in just two days.

Later that night, after I had danced with Justin, who seemed very interested in taking me home as some sort of prize, I motioned for Reid to come to my rescue.

"Hey gorgeous, time to go?" He said almost too sweetly.

Justin frowned at the label.

"Um not just yet babe, I wanted to have a dance with my boy." I replied.

I winked at Justin, who seemed taken back by the odd display of couple-ness between Reid and I.

"Mhmm" Reid said, stepping around Justin and taking my hand from his.

"Excuse me dude, sorry." He said politely.

Justin shrugged and bid me good night, before finding his own friends.

"Oh thank the lord. I thought he was going to kidnap me in a sack and terminate my innocence." I said to Reid.

He laughed, "Glad to be of service. Thought you two were hittin' it off?"

"Yeah, but I'm new here and I don't want to you know, get a reputation for random hook-ups just yet." I said, my eyes smiling.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Justin talking to his friends and looking over to Reid and me. He looked determined. For what I wasn't sure.

Reid knew what was happening though.

"I think lover boy doesn't believe us. Better make your point now before he terminates my head."

I grinned, knowing exactly what Reid meant.

I sighed, "As long as you don't tease me in the morning."

"Wouldn't dream of it." He said menacingly.

With one swift movement, his lips touched my own and he slipped his tongue in. I moaned a little, surprised.

We finally pulled apart, and grinned at each other.

It was fun to kiss Reid.

A laugh escaped my lips, and he kissed me again.

'just for perks," he said and twirled me around before slinging me over his shoulder effortlessly and carrying me over to the gang.

As Reid set me down, I glanced over at Tyler, who was looking a little too slaphappy. "Has Ty been drinking?" I asked surprised. He seemed like such a good boy.

Caleb nodded and grinned, Pogue looked guilty. I glanced around, as Kate and Sarah weren't seated at the table. They were dancing near the jukebox.

"Come on Ty let's dance a little, shake off that alcohol okay?" I said glaring at the older boys. Reid shot me a devilish grin.

I grabbed Tyler's hand and led him to the jukebox to find a song. F4 I typed into the Jukebox.

"_Hey Baby, hey baby hey!_

_The girls say, the boys say_

_Hey baby hey baby hey!"_

No Doubt blared through the speaker and I squealed.

"Wooh!" IU yelled and guided Tyler through the crowd to where Kate and Sarah were dancing. Shaking my booty, I danced so close to Ty, he winked at me suggestively, so I backed off a little.

Sure he was gorgeous, but he was also drunk.

And among friends.

Besides I'd already made out with one handsome man tonight.

When the song finished, I decided that it was way too early to leave, so insisted that we get alcohol.

I bought Tequila shots for all my buddies and we downed them easily.

Nicky thought I was over age, so it wasn't an issue. I had the advantage of being the unknown kid.

I challenged Reid to a duel. Four Tequila shots, two Jim Beams and three Smirnoff's later, both Reid and I were smashed.

We crawled over to our table and giggled.

Caleb noticed our trashy state and sobered up immediately.

"Okay everyone, time for home."

There were various 'nooo's' resounding from each mouth, but they new Caleb was right. Slowly one by one, we piled into Tyler's Hummer, with Caleb behind the wheel and agreed to all stay at Caleb's place and mine.

We were all still drunk when we got home, so we all decided to crash in the Media Room.

Tyler had passed out on the last couch leaving only the floor. I snuggled into two doona's with Reid.

"I had fun tonight with you," he said close to my ear.

I smiled, "Good. Oh and thanks for rescuing me"

"Anytime, Princess."


	6. The Morning After

_Hey chickens, just to clarify 'doona' is in fact a blanket. Sorry! _

_Those damn Aussies shakes fists_

The next morning I awoke to the sweet aroma of pancakes. I smiled, as it was the most yummiest smell in the world for me. I glanced around.

Everyone had left the room except for Tyler, who still seemed as dead to the world now as he did last night.

"Morning, Princess." A husky voice laced with sleep said behind me.

I gulped.

Rolling over, Reid came into view.

"Hey yourself. Did you have a good sleep?" I asked fervently.

This could either be very awkward of very sensual. It was Reid's choice.

"I sure did. Nice to have someone to sleep with _all _the way into the morning, and not have to worry about getting caught." He said smiling.

I rolled my eyes and placed the pillow over my head. It was thumping faintly and my stomach was protesting that it have some food injected into it, before it projects some outwards.

Sadly, I couldn't be bothered moving from my spot of solitude, so instead I just rolled onto my stomach hoping the compression would make the pain go away. I turned my head to the side for air.

I grumbled. Thank God it was a Saturday or I would be in a far worse mood.

I heard Reid get up beside me.

"Come on Princess rise and shine." He said tapping my arm. When I didn't move, he slapped my butt in typical Reid fashion. I wriggled but remained on the floor.

He knelt beside me then and leaned in closer to me, and started to kiss my arm, moving to my shoulder blade and finally my neck. I shivered.

I wasn't quite sure how that was supposed to initiate me getting off the ground, but it certainly had an effect on me. I smiled cheekily.

"Trying to seduce me, Reid?" I asked completely straight-laced, not giving him the satisfaction of being coy.

He smirked and brushed some hair out of my face.

"I just like to see you looking all vulnerable. Now get up, I know you're hungry"

I grunted and rolled onto my back, Reid clasping my hands and pulling me to my feet.

"Ooopsie!" I said as I stumbled a little. He held on to me tightly laughter in his eyes.

"You really do need food."

"So Caleb, tell me all your deepest and darkest secrets." I said to Caleb after breakfast was finished. Reid and Tyler were playing 'Resident Evil' on the X-Box, Sarah, Kate had gone for a walk, and Pogue was having a shower. I let my thoughts pause on that one.

"I have no secrets to tell you. I'm a good boy." Caleb replied indignantly.

I snorted, "Sure you are." I hopped off the kitchen bench and made my way over to the dishwasher. "I'm going to go for a swim. I'll be back in an hour or so." I said. I was bored and needed something physical to do.  
"You can't go for a swim! It's raining outside!" Caleb said, his voice rising.

"What's your point?" I asked dumbfounded. Rain was rain.

When he didn't answer, I sighed and headed toward my bedroom to find my bathers.

It wasn't just raining. It was pouring down. But it wasn't freezing. It was just nice.

I dived into the pool and shivered for a minute until my body got used to the temperature. I floated on my back for a while.

It really didn't bother me, being wet on a colder day. It was comforting because it was weird. Mum and me used to weird stuff like this all the time.

She got a tattoo once, and I was with her the whole time. It was the Japanese symbol of Hope. She inspired me to get my own tattoo's.

After pondering what my next tattoo would be, I realized that my body was beginning to get numb. Just as I was about to leave the pool, I heard a voice yelling my name.

"Alice! Alice! Where are you?"

I sighed as a dark figure became visible through the rain.

"Oh my God, I found you!" Reid said, standing above me.

"What are you doing out here in the rain? Aren't you cold?"

I smiled, glancing up, "Nope".

"Okay well, I think you should come inside, there are going to be thunder storms pretty soon."

"Excellent."

"No, not excellent. Dangerous. Come on Alice. Seriously." He said. There was concern in those gorgeous blue eyes. I thought it was quite amusing that all these people believed such nonsense about it being so cold.

I narrowed my eyes, as I was never one to take orders. I was a stubborn brat some days I swear. I held my hand up, "In a minute".

Poor Reid was getting soaked by this point, but he was a stubborn creature too.

After what seemed five minutes, I hefted myself out of the pool and walked slowly inside.

I stared at the bathroom. It was awesome and huge. In the centre of the room was an in ground spa-bath, surrounded by pillars. On the surrounding walls was a toilet, and old style claw bath, a floor-to-ceiling mirror, marble benches and a large shower with a drawstring curtain that looked like it was opening for a show at Moulin Rouge rather than a simple shower. I giggled and hopped in.

At that exact moment, I thanked all the Gods that ever walked the earth for those lovely curtains, because someone else apart from my conscience strutted in.

"Alice? You in here?" He yelled over the water.

"What do you think?" I yelled back over the curtains.

"Just wanted to make sure it was you that I walked in on and not Pogue." He said, his voice getting lower.

"Oh no you don't. Reid Garwin if you open that curtain I-"

"I'm not going to perv on you. Least not yet, anyway."

Sweet.

I sighed, "Fine well you can wait for me to come out. I'm almost done."

Minutes later, Reid's voice echoed from the bedroom,

"Hey Sexy Lady," he crooned, "I like your flow".

I changed into some trackies, and walked into the bedroom.

"And here I was hoping that you would get changed right in front of me," he said sighing.

I smirked, "Nice singing."

"It's one of my special talents."

"Oh really? What are your other special talents? Blowing bubbles through a straw?" I asked amused.

He smiled wickedly, "Well, I have very extensive knowledge about-"

"Reid? Over share. Not interested." I stopped him, holding up my hands.

He laughed, "Okay well, seeing that you don't want me to share, I must be off. I got shit to do and so little time to do it."

"Nice," I said a little disgusted.

After everyone had left, Caleb and I settled down to watch some crappy television shows. After what seemed like an hour of flipping through channels unsuccessfully, we decided to run to the Video Store to rent some movies. Before too long, the gang was seated in the Media Room yet again, quietly watching 'The Exorcism of Emily Rose'.

I loved horror films, but things that were weird, like the poor girl on screen contorting and speaking in a low demonic voice completely freaked me out.

I was sitting in between Reid and Tyler, and I was holding both their hands for comfort. Once it was finished, we all had a break and scrambled for food.

"Walk down the right back alley in Sin City and you can find anything," Said a gravely voice coming from the television. I loved this movie. It was so cool.

"I wish I was a stripper in Sin City. Looks like fun." I said to no-one in particular.

A laugh came from the person sitting beside me.

"You can be a stripper for me anyday, Princess."

"Oh Reid. That's not what I meant. I just mean that it would be cool to you know, pretend to be a stripper I guess, not having to service people or actually take off your clothes, but to think of yourself as one, that lived in Sin City, like the movie-" I tried to make sense, but no prevail.

Reid looked at me, "Alice, honey, you can't say you want to be a stripper without the whole she-bang. It doesn't work like that love."

"I know that," I said hitting him, "I would just enjoy being the character of Nancy or something. It's just a great movie."

"Riight." He said smirking and looking away from me.

I huffed. I knew what I was talking about.

Once that was over, the boys decided to go to Nicky's. Kate and Sarah decided to head back to Kate's house for some bonding time.

"You sure you don't want to come?" Kate asked for the millionth time.

"Positive," I said, "I need to get used to my room, otherwise I'll go crazy once school starts."

They both laughed, and headed to the door, "Call us tomorrow? I think we should go shopping or something."

"Will do," I replied, "Night girls.


	7. Sarah and The Cold

The next morning I awoke to my head pounding against the pillow.

I peeled my eyes open, and sniffed. My ears and nosed were blocked. I had a damn cold.

I dragged myself out of bed and into the bathroom to have a hot shower.

After I got dressed into a black top and jeans, I stumbled down the hallway to the stairs and finally reached the kitchen. Caleb sat eating rice bubbles on the counter.

"You don't look so well," He said eyeing me.

"I feel like a train, bus and tram have hit me all at once."

"Could this possibly chalk up to the afternoon swim in the blizzard?" Caleb asked.

I narrowed my eyes at him, "No. I blame Reid."

"But Reid doesn't have a cold."

"Doesn't matter."

He sighed, realizing that I wasn't going to budge on the issue.

"Where are you going?" I asked unaware of my surroundings.

"To my room. I'm searching for some college brochures. Kind of boring, but necessary.

"Hmm. Well yes, it does sound boring. I'm supposed to be going shopping with your girlfriend, so I guess I'll see you later."

Within a few moments, Sarah entered my room. I jumped, caught off guard.

"Oooh, you look nice today" She said, always smiling.

I looked at her shocked. "I look like crap!"

I looked horrible. I felt even worse.

"As if. Come on. We got some major shopping to do."

She grabbed my arm, nearly yanking clear out of the socket and dragged me downstairs. By the time we reached her car, I was a mess. Enough physical exertion for me for one day.

We shopped for what seemed like hours. Sarah informed me it was a mere three hours. I nodded my head, not really listening. I needed to sit. Badly.

"I need to food, to regain my strength. Do they have McDonald's here?"

She scrunched up her nose, "Ew. No. And thank God. Let's go to that café over there. I don't think Caleb's ever taken me there!"

I snorted before mimicking her words in a more girly voice, "_I don't think Caleb's ever taken me there._ You are so in love kid."

She hit my arm before smiling, "I know". She ran to the front entrance and held the door open for me.

"Thank you, my dear" I said in a posh voice, and waltzed in.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Princess Alice, come to make my day complete."

I whipped around, and found Reid sitting at a table with Tyler. I waved, and walked over, plonking down next to him.

"What's up kids? Anything exciting happen in my absence?" I asked fondly. I was really beginning to like Caleb's friends. Especially Reid. He was an oddball child.

"Just been getting myself into mischief. And you?" Reid replied casually.

"Hah. You're not as badass as you think you are."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really."

"OKAY! Guys, I'm hungry, let's not keep food waiting please." Sarah inserted, hoping to end the little argument. I winked at Reid and ordered my food.

The poor waitress that served us was so amazed by Reid and Tyler that she stuttered a little. She stared at them both the entire time Sarah and I were ordering. Silly girl. When she left, Reid burst out laughing. I hit him upside the head, "Shh, she can hear you. Take it as a complement you dickweed."

"Dickweed? That's a new one."

"Oh yeah? I could keep them comin' all day buddy-"

"Eherm. Let's talk about other stuff. Sarah how was your day?" Tyler interjected.

A dark smile lit Reid's face.

"What?" I whispered as Tyler and Sarah began a conversation of their own.

"Nothing."

I leaned back, away from him to study his face. He smirked and then pitched in on the conversation. So, the seduction begins.

After we all finished our meals, I sighed and held my stomach, "Phew. I'm full man. Time for my nanna nap."

"No way, we aren't finshed shopping yet!" Sarah said excitedly.

Before I could protest, she had pulled me out of my chair and it was either walk or be dragged the rest of the way. "I'll see you guys later!" She yelled.

I winced, and waved half-heartedly at the boys. "Exactly how many shops are there in Ipswich?" I said croakily.


	8. Oh Reid

"Bye Sarah, thanks for the wonderful shop!" I yelled sarcastically, waving my hand, as Sarah drove off without hearing me. I felt like at any moment I would pass out. My head was thoroughly throbbing, my throat ached and my eye lids were droopy.

Walking through the door, Caleb's face greeted me. "Hey sis, bought something for you," he said pulling Cold & Flu tablets of a chemist bag. My mood immediately lifted, and I threw my arms around his neck, "Oh my God! Thank you so much. You're a life saver Cal, you really are."

He chuckled, "No problem. No you head up to your room, have a shower and hop into bed. I bought some DVD's and I've made you dinner, so all you have to do is relax."

I beamed. What a lovely brother this kid was turning out as.

He smiled, "Now."

"Okay okay, I'm going." I laughed and trudged up the stairs.

Once I was safely settled in bed, with some soup and 'Cruel Intentions', I was completely relaxed. Caleb had told me to ring his mobile if I needed anything because he was going out for dinner with Sarah. My solitude was ruined.

"Alice?" I heard a muffled voice come from outside my door.

"Yes? Come in" I said, unsure of whom it was.

The big red doors opened to reveal Reid. "Sick are we?"

"I had a feeling you would dazzle me with your presence. Why are you here? You gave me this cold"

"I did not!" he replied dumbfounded.

"Did too"

"You probably got it from swimming out in the COLD, WET, RAIN!"

I laughed, "I know, I just wanted to annoy you. You seemed to have the ability to piss others off, but no one pisses you off. Ever." I said laughing triumphantly.

"Not true. You're step-brother is pretty good at it"

"Caleb? Really? I couldn't fault the kid so far." I said, surprised.

"Well, you haven't known him as long as I have. Give it time," he said crossing the room to sit at the edge of my bed. He glanced at the T.V.

"Cruel Intentions? Come on, had to be the lamest movie ever"

I growled, "Why? Because it doesn't have nudity, or lame sarcasm, or fast cars? Grow up Reid, movies have evolved, so should you"

He grinned, "Ouch. No it's just a gay movie."

"Argh. Shut up. I you don't like it then why are you still here?"

"Because of you."

I flicked the 'off' button, and glared at him.

"What did you say?"

"I said, I'm here because of you. I told you I'd have my chance sooner or later."

I frowned, "Reid, are you trying to get into my pants?"

"Maybe. A little. Yes. Is it working?"

"No"

It was his turn to frown. "But I thought you liked me."

"Just because I'm not throwing myself at you doesn't mean I don't like you. I hardly know you and that's the problem."

He inched forward, placing a hand on my knee.

"So you're telling me you don't feel a thing?"

"Yup," I said, flicking the T.V back on. After a few moments, I turned to look at Reid. His hand was still placed on my leg.

"Eherm? Mind moving that?"

"No, thanks. I'm good."

I grabbed onto his hand and dug my nails in. He yanked his hand away ad placed his hands back in his lap, "Here's good too." He eyed me for a moment, a little unsure.

"You don't have to be scared of me you know. I just don't like to be man-handled all the time."

He leaned into towards me, and my eyes narrowed. I wasn't afraid to hit where it hurt if necessary.

"You didn't seem to mind the other night," He whispered into my ear. He smelt nice. Nevertheless, it was not intoxicating. Not the way he had planned it to be anyway.

I turned my head, so our faces and mouths were only inches away from each other.

I breathed, "The other night is about as close to me as you're gonna get. Ever." I replied in a sultry voice, before leaving the bed to head toward the bathroom.

He was quicker.

"Where ya going?" He said, blocking the doorway.

"To dry my hair." I replied calmly, trying to step around him.

"Give me a kiss and I'll let you pass." He said defiantly.

"How bout you let me pass and I'll give you a kiss after?"

"Deal."

Moments later, I emerged to find Reid sprawled on his stomach on my bed, butt naked.

I rolled my eyes, "Am I interrupting something?"

He grinned and rolled over. I shielded my eyes from the onslaught and coughed, "A little inappropriate don't ya think?"

"Not at all" he said, his voice close to me.

I looked past my hands, to realize he was standing inches away from me.

"Do I make you nervous?" He asked.

I nearly laughed, but decided to hold it in.

"Hardly. I think it's the other way around. I make you nervous because you're not sure how I'm going to react. If you think you're scent, you're body, you're charm is going to make me weak at the knees, then think again." I said, shoving my hair towel into his lower region, to cover it and hurt it. He grunted at the force, flinching a little.

He never expects me to do anything.

I giggled, and walked past him and flopped down on my bed. "You know where the front door is. I suggest you get dressed before you leave though."


	9. The Tragedy

I hopped into bed happy. It was a Sunday night and I was ready to do some reading. Dad went away yesterday and would not be returning until the following Friday, Caleb was staying at Sarah's and Evelyn was already asleep. I had the entire night to devote to myself. I began reading a lovely book called 'Ruby In The Smoke' by Philip Pullman. It was an extremely interesting story I had read many times. It still thrilled me to read the books over and over.

After an hour, my eyes began to droop and the world went quiet. I reached over and turned off my lamp, shifting under the covers. Sleeping was one of my many talents.

'_I dare you to tell me to walk on the fire_

_Brand my soul and call me a liar_

_I dare you to tell me to walk through the fire_

_I dare you to tell me_

_I dare you to'_

My cell phone sang Shinedown's 'I Dare You' to me. I sat up in bed and looked over at my clock.

3 AM.

Nice work, who the ever the hell was calling me. I sighed and scrambled for my phone.

"Hello" I said sleepily.

"Yo! ALICE! WHAT YOU DOIN' BABE?!"

Dear sweet mother of God. It was Reid.

"Reid? What the fu-"

"Come meet me outside"

"No"

"Why the hell not?". There was some muffling, and the engine of a car in the background.

"Because, Reid, I'm in bed, and I'm not driving to wherever you are just to see you, _at 3 o'clock in the morning_!" I was thoroughly annoyed by now. Hot or not, that boy was pushing my buttons.

"Come out on to your balcony" He said in a husky voice.

"Reid why woul-"

"Just do it!" He barked.

"Jesus, okay. Calm down kid." I got up, unlocked my balcony door, and stumbled out. Without out even seeing him, he grabbed me around the waist and slammed me up against the high railings. I was in shock and before I knew it, he bent, ever so slowly to kiss me.

"Ow. What was that?" I asked dumbfounded.

"Just go with it. You know you want to." He said smirking.

Suddenly a fist met Reid's cheek, sending him to the ground. I realized it was my own.

Glancing down, I tried not to laugh. He was sprawled on the floor, completely shocked. He looked like a stunned mullet. He was the first to speak, "What the HELL was that?! I was just kissing you, you crazy woman." He got up slowly, backing me against the doors. I giggled a little. He glared. So I put on a straight face.

"Excuse me? I'm crazy?! What about you? You're at my house, on my balcony calling me at all hours of the f-ing morning expecting me to be you're little fuck buddy or something. I told you once and I will tell you again, I'm not that kind of girl." I sighed, hoping that I was getting though.

"So? I'm just trying to have fun. Just play with me," He said closing what small space we had between us. He leaned in to kiss me again, but just in time, I placed my hand over his face. He grunted.

"Let me put it to you this way, _babe_. Even your fantasy of me isn't interested in you." Shoving his face away, hard, I smirked at my efforts. He was a bit irresistible, but nothing I could not handle.

However, the next thing that happened was when my life changed. My cell phone rang again, and I answered.

"Is this Alice Platt?" asked a stern voice.

"Yes." I said uneasily.

"Are you the daughter of Jonathan Platt?" Nice clinical questions. My stomach began to churn.

"We have your father at the Gloucester Hospital," the voice turned soft, "He was in an accident-"

"What do mean was?" I said frantically.

"If you could please come down to the Hospital I think yo-"

"Tell me if he is okay," I said in a cold voice.

"Miss Platt, please, its not-"

"Tell me!"

The woman on the phone must have whispered something that I did not like to hear, because my knees crumbled. I fell to the floor and stayed there.

"Shit. Alice?" I heard Reid say frantically, somewhere in the distance. He plucked the phone out of my hand, while holding my head.

"Yes I'm her boyfriend."

A few minutes later, "He what?!"

"Oh my god."


	10. The Lonely Hearts Parade

'_Cry ourselves to sleep_

_We will sleep alone forever_

_Will you lay me down_

_In the same place with all I love_

_Mend the broken homes_

_Care for them they are our brothers_

_Save the fading light in our souls_

_In my opinion seeing is to know_

_What you give_

_Will always carry you_

_And who's to say _

_We won't survive it too_

_On broken wings I'm falling _

_And it won't be long_

_The skin on me is burning _

_By the fires of the sun_

_On skinned knees_

_I'm bleeding_

_And it won't be long_

_I've got to find that meaning _

_And I'll search for so long_

_Set a-free all _

_Relying on their will _

_To make me all that I am _

_And all that I'll be_

_Set a-free all_

_Will fall between the cracks_

_With memories of all that I am_

_And all that I'll be_

_On broken wings I'm falling _

_And it won't be long_

_The skin on me is burning _

_By the fires of the sun_

_On skinned knees_

_I'm bleeding_

_And it won't be long_

_I've got to find that meaning _

_And I'll search for so long'_ 'Broken Wings' by Alter Bridge

The sad words of the song filtered through my brain, but nothing remained in my memory.

I was alone and that's all I could register.

I knew that I was at a funeral, that my new family and my friends were seated beside me. I also knew that he would never be coming back.

A gentle hand took hold of mine. I glanced up, looking into the soft and hurt eyes of Evelyn. My step-mother, the woman who had done nothing but be there for me.

A tear swelled up in my eyes and I gulped looking away.

What was going to happen to me now? I was unsure of my future. It all seemed to wiz past me, but none made sense.

After the service, and after his coffin was lowered into the ground, I walked over to another grave and sat next to an angel placed on a marble gravestone.

It was the most beautiful thing I had seen. It's wings formed a cave-like cover for the grave and shielded me from the soft rain. I didn't leave with the others. I didn't even bother to tell them where I was going. I couldn't speak.

So I just sat there. Watching my father's grave being covered over with fresh, wet soil. It began to pour, but I still couldn't move. I just stared, and even after everyone had left, I remained.

I felt small and insignificant. And as the cool rain hit my face, it mixed with my hot tears. Black droplets, an indication that my mascara was running wildly on my face, hit my hands. A sob, then a howl. I had to leave.

So I ran. I ran all the way home and crashed through the doors of the Danvers estate.

I threw myself wildly on my bed, my shoulders racking from the harsh cries of sorrow flowing out of me. I couldn't do anything but cry. I felt so empty and deprived.

Deprived of the one person that truly meant anything to me.

Why was he taken away from me?

The words kept running through my head, finally making the anger rise up and my blood boil. I stood up and grabbed the first weapon I could find.

My sword, still in its holster, connected with the lamp. Breaking it, I yelled and screamed, hitting anything I could find.

I began to howl, fresh tears tearing from my eyes.

Unbeknownst to me, a man stood in the doorway, wide-eyed at the monstrosity of the girl before him. His eyes followed her movements, unsure of what may happen next.

The tears slowed, having nothing else to cry out, and no strength left in my small body.

I punched the wall, leaving a whole where my fist connected. The wall was not the only wounded, as my knuckles were bloody. But I barely noticed. The pain didn't go to my head.

I turned around, my back against the wall, and sliding down it slowly, I crumbled. Head in my hands, my legs curled up to my head, I sat there rocking myself, trying not to think.

Cool gentle hands held my shoulders. I stopped rocking. Someone that finally noticed my agony was my saviour. I didn't care who comforted me at this moment, so long as I was not alone through this ordeal.

I lifted my head slowly, strength coming in small bouts. The pale hand reached under my chin to help me. Reid's pale blond hair and pale face came into view. His eyes were what gave him away. They looked saddened, as though he hated to see a friend in pain.

"I, I don't.." I struggled to clear my throat, "I don't know what I'm going to do."

It came out all croaky, my breaths quickened at the anxiety, my throat burning.

My head crashed down into my hands again.

Those hands that helped me before lifted me up easily into his arms, and he carried me to the bed. Placing me down slowly, he handed me a glass of water. I gulped it down nervously, trying frantically to clam myself. I had scared my own self with the display of hatred.

I had trashed some of my most prized possessions in hopes of getting him back.

But I couldn't say any of this to Reid. I couldn't think properly.

Any thoughts were muddled in my head.

"You don't have to explain, just sleep." His voice soothed me.

"Do you want be alone?"

I shook my head frantically. No words, Alice, keep it simple.

"You don't want to be alone do you," it was more of a statement than a question, "It's okay, you don't have to answer. Sleep".

With that, I settled under the covers. My bed was my one sanctuary were I felt safe. Reid moved in beside me and laid one arm under my head, the other holding my hand. I faced him, snuggling into his chest, my head resting neatly below his chin.

This is how I used to cuddle with my dad as a baby girl.

I felt so safe this way.

As I lay there, in his arms, I told myself, willed myself to fall asleep. As if Reid was reading my thoughts, he began to softly chant to me.

"Sleep, Alice. Its going to be okay. You're not alone. You have all of us, and we're going to take care of you. I promise you won't be alone. Never alone. So don't think, just sleep. We'll take care of you……"


	11. What Are Friends For

My eyes flicked open, and I sat bolt right up in bed. It was nighttime by the looks of it. I looked to the left of me to find Reid sleeping. I remembered that he had comforted me. My eyes felt hot and were puffy. I hardly cared.

I felt uncomfortable, and needed fresh air, time to think.

Grabbing a warm blanket out of my closet, I dragged it outside onto the balcony. It was a cool night, but not terribly cold.

I hoisted myself up onto the railings and rested my head against the wall. Closing my eyes, I wrapped the warm blanket around myself and thought.

Thought about him. He had meant so much to me and in one swift moment he was gone.

I couldn't understand it. Why did he have to fail me?

It sounded selfish, and it was, I knew it was. I missed him so fiercely.

I wanted to take comfort in his voice again, have one last bear hug. Laugh at his hideous jokes.

His ever-present smile.

"Hey," came a voice from the doorway.

I blinked and opened my eyes.

I shifted to get off, but Reid got to me faster, "No stay as you are. I just wanted to check on you."

He blinked, taking in my presence. I looked scarily pale and the tears looked like permanent stains on my cheeks. He lifted one hand, but then placed it behind his back. I sighed, discouraged by his lack of comfort. I longed to be touched. To be reminded that I was still loved, hell, even liked by anyone. I wanted to feel needed.

He smiled then, and I threw my arms around his neck.

"Please say you'll be there for me," I mumbled into his neck, "I don't care if you're an asshole to me; I just want someone to know who I am and remember I'm still here."

He pulled away from me, and I looked at him questioningly.

"I would never be an asshole to you. You don't deserve that."

I looked down, unsure of what to say next.

"Don't look away from me. I told I would stay and take care of you and I will," he then leaned in, an inch away from my mouth, "Even if it means kissing you to feel better."

He did a soft kiss on my lips. It felt so comforting, but I just could not put any effort in. He knew this, and pulled away, taking my face in his hands.

"Alice, I don't know what you are thinking, I can't read minds, but if I did I would do anything to take the pain away for you. But I can't, so you're going to have to let me in at some point to help you. I know you can scream that you are a big girl and that you're tough, but the truth is, you're just a vulnerable as the next person. Don't be a closed book."

I took a breath, "I'll be honest. I just don't want to be alone right now. I can't be dramatic and be alone. It doesn't work that way with me. I have to feel loved or attended to. I'm afraid that if I'm left alone, I might go crazy. Just be there for me. That's all I want."

He nodded, all that needed to be said was out in the open. He took my hand in his and led me inside. I lay down on the bed, and he followed. We returned to that comforting position.

He shifted his head, to whisper into my ear, "You don't have to be afraid."

With that, I cried again, into his soft yet solid chest, his arms wrapped tightly around my small frame.


	12. Memories Are All I Got

I shifted in the seat of my car. I was roving to an unknown destination, and while it had seemed like a good idea at the time, I was pretty much lost.

Two days after the funeral, and already I going out of my mind. If one more person, whom I didn't know, walked up to me expressed their 'I'm so sorry to hear about your father' I was going to smash them. I had to get out of that town.

Huge trees that darkened the long stretch of road I was on surrounded me.

The setting could have been cool for a scary movie. I guess this would be the part where I stupidly got out of the car and wandered into the forest, never to be heard of again.

I'd be the girl that 'lost her father, then went on a mysterious road trip, wandered off track and was never found. All that was left was a beat up '67 Camaro, rusted form the years and heartbreak.'

God I was sentimental when I was lost. Soon I would be reciting a line from 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'.

Ten minutes passed and I couldn't stand not knowing where I was.

"Dammit," I said pulling over, "Come on Alice, pull it together."

I always had conversations to myself to pass time. It was fun. I'm surprised I hadn't been institutionalized. Most people thought I was crazy.

I reached over to the back, trying to find the map I had grabbed earlier.

Of course, I had left it somewhere else.

"Just fabulous, Alice. You really are going to die old and alone."

I picked up my phone, dialing the first number I could remember.

"Alice? Haven't seen or heard from you in two days. How'd you get my phone number? On speed dial hey?"

"Hey Reid. No sorry to disappoint you but I remembered your number solely because I could sing along to it and do a dance. You know 0-4-0-2 never mind. Anyway, the reason I called is because I'm lost."

"Do you have a map?"

"No"

"Do you have any idea what town you just passed?"

"Nope"

"What does this place look like?"

"A scene out of 'Texas Chainsaw'. Minus the crazy man with the face and the chainsaw of course. All though, I think if I wandered far enough into the forest I could fi-"

"Alice, what does it look like?"

"I don't know! Forest-y. You grew up in Ipswich, do you really need a description?"

"Yes."

"Fine. I'm on a really long stretch of road that I've been on for about half an hour. It surrounded by huge trees. Forest goes for ages."

"Dirt road or cement?"

"Gravel"

"Uh Pope Forest. Hold on, I'll be there in a few."

Some moments later, a silver Lexus pulled up to my car. The window wound down to reveal Reid.

"Hey there stranger. Come on follow me."

Once we pulled into Reid's family house, I sighed. I was home. Sort of.

"So tell me again why you decided to take an anonymous road trip to nowhere?"

"I thought I'd be adventurous. I was gone for ages."

"You were half an hour out of town. Couldn't have gone that far."

"I swear. I left at 3.30-ish. It is now 6PM . There is no way in hell that I could have been a mere thirty minutes out."

"Well, maybe you got abducted and don't remember."

"Or perhaps Ipswich has that whole 'Bermuda Triangle' thing goin' on and you can never leave. You drive around for hours and you end up right back where you started."

He looked at me sideways, "You are so strange."

"Hey. Be nice, I'm still grieving you know. I'm allowed to be weird."

He stepped in front of me before we reached his front door, and took hold of my shoulders, "How are you anyway? I mean I called the house last night and Caleb answered saying that you weren't there. I figured you wanted to be alone."

"I did want to be alone actually. I know I said I didn't, but I was being waaay too dramatic. I needed time to think," I said, taking in a deep breath.

"After we talked and I trashed my room, I felt so bad for putting all that on you, so I decided I'd have a talk with myself. You know, get myself straightened out before I saw you again. I scared you with my meltdown, didn't I?"

He shifted, "A little. But I lost my mom when I was little. It wasn't such a huge loss because I didn't know any better. I still miss her, but I didn't have her all my life like you did, you know? It's okay to feel pain."

I laughed at this. "You know, Mr. Garwin, I think I underestimated you."

"What's that mean?"

"It means, I thought you were all looks. Turns out you do have a heart as well."

He smiled, "Despite all that you've heard, I have feelings too." He winked and I hit him playfully.

"So seriously, you okay?"

I nodded, "I will be. It's like I went through my Shock, Denial, Bargaining, Guilt, Anger, and Depression all in one day. I feel really exhausted if anything. I spoke to Caleb for while. And I spoke to Evelyn. She told me she would adopt me and I would stay with her and Caleb. She said she would pay for my tuition to college. Everything feels fairly peachy, apart from the fact that my dad's not here with me. I think I felt uneasy, not knowing who was going to take care of me, or who I could depend on. Now that that's all settled, I can just breathe and really think about him. Remember him. Both the good and bad times. Because that's all I've got now, memories."

He nodded knowingly.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I was rather impressed by you're display of athleticism, especially with that sword."

I laughed, and he leaned in closer to me, "You can lean on me anytime."

I grinned and hugged him, "That means a lot to me. Thank you." I pulled away and started walking, "Thank you."

"You said that already," he said smiling. "I know, but it sounds so much more sincere the second time around. What about the third ti-"

"Alice? Enough thank you's. How about dinner with the Olds. Can you handle it?"

I nodded, "Give me parents anyday."


	13. The Birth Of Ace

_Hey kids, just to clarify, Alice is mixture of these two models. If you look them up on the internet, their names are Lonneke Engel and Marina Perez. Blue eyes, black hair, 5'9, and perfect. Oh and also after we found out that Alice's dad died, it's like a week after the funeral. It did not fit into the story somehow, so I skipped forward a bit. Hope you don't feel robbed. _

Dinner was a hit. Reid's father was hilarious and his trophy wife was, well, a dipshit. But a harmless one.

"So Alice, I hope we will be seeing more of you in the future. Reid never brings girls over here." Mr. Garwin, or Alan as he asked me to call him, said proudly.

"I will be sure to pop over regularly if Reid allows it," I said smiling. I really did enjoy their company.

"See you later Old Man, Melanie." Reid said waving.

"Bye son, bye Alice." Alan Garwin replied, closing the door.

We walked to our separate cars laughing, "Wow you're parentals really are something."

"I know. Melanie is dumb huh?" Reid asked.

"That she is. But she is so nice that you can kind of forgive her for the lack of brain cells. Must be from all the hairspray. Or botox. Maybe I'll ask her next time."

Reid laughed, "At least you've got your humour back. You scared me for a while. I was beginning to miss that Alice spunk."

"Yeah well, it may be in short supply for little while. I have my moments."

He looked over at me, "Reid, don't ask me how I am. I feel like you're walking on eggshells around me whenever either you or I mention it. You don't have to be cautious. I have moments each day when I miss him and I wish he was there. But I also realize that I can't wallow in my own pity. He wouldn't want me to continuously sit around thinking about things that I can't change."

Reid, glanced down, then looked up at me again, with knowing eyes. "Don't look at me like that. I'm just telling that to myself and anyone else who asks for now, to help me get through." I smiled bitterly. "I'm probably not fooling anyone but myself here, but it works. I suppose this is the part of the movie where I'm supposed to say that I'm tough and that I can handle it, while at night I secretly cry myself to sleep. Apparently I'm suppose to feel unhappy when I have happy moments because I'm meant to feel guilty about having fun. I'm not like that and never feel the need to be," I took a breath, "If I need to cry, at any given moment I will. If I need to be alone, or with someone I will request it. If I need to tell that I'm upset or angry I will. If I need to laugh or be excited then I damn well will. But I don't want to tell you to be careful with me constantly. Yes, I lost my dad, but somewhere in the process, I gained four new friends, a brother and a mother. There will always be inconsistency in my life, but I'm okay with that."

"Phew, you're making me dizzy with all your speeches of the late. Anything else you wanna get off your chest?" Reid said, looking at me like I was an alien.

"No," I said laughing, "I just like to get my point across and I babble a lot and go off in tangents and over explain myself, like I'm doing now, and when I eventually get to the point it doesn't feel like the point so I babble more."

"You know I think you just Aced yourself." He said with clarity. I frowned.

"What I mean is you like double whammied yourself. My friends call it Acing yourself when you babble on about crap until no-one knows what you were even talking about to begin with. It also applies to when people just like hearing the sound of their own voice."

"So that applies to you. A lot."

"Hey, I have my moments. But it suits you better. It's a matching nickname too, AliCE. It's like the Alice without Li."

"You're a moron"

"Tell me about it, Ace"


	14. Speaking French

"Okay okay, so I don't get it. You're family is perfectly normal, but where did this 'I'm a playa' bullshit come from? A girl break your heart?" I asked drunkenly. The gang was at Nicky's.

"Noo, nothing like that Ace, I just didn't want to be the relationship guy. I saw how everybody else was so miserable half the time, and I only wanted fun times, so I never questioned having relationships. One night stands work just fine for me."

"That has got to be the dumbest thing I ever heard, Garwin," Pogue said.

We all laughed. We were now down to beers, after having Jim Beam, Smirnoff and numerous shots of God-knows-what.

"Alright kids, you gotta leave now, we're closing up and if you don't act sober, the cops will do my ass." Nicky himself said walking up to clear our table. We were the last group there.

"I agree. Bed's lookin' good right now." Sarah said, covering a yawn.

So we all filed, more like stumbled out of Nicky's. We had stupidly had another random picnic in the forest again, so left our cars there and walked to Nicky's. We were quite confused at this point, until Nicky pointed us in the right direction.

"My ears itchy." I said as Reid and I stumbled through the grass and trees, arm in arm. "So scratch it"

"It's like a non scratchy itch. It's inside my ear. Like a bugs niggling at my ear or something."

"Alright, lemme have a look," Reid said shining a torch into my ear, "Nope don't see nothing"

"Nice English, fuckwit. You sound like a half-bred… tripe." I said slowly

"Is that all?"

"Yup, pretty much the extent of my vocabuulbrary when I'm drunk," I stuttered through the 'vocabulary', "I can't make proper inscence when I'm happy."

"I think you mean 'insult' and the correct term is 'drunk'. Me too, but your waaay more wasted than moi."

"Why does the human race speak French when they are trying to individual? You know, speak all normal and English and then pop in an 'excuse moi' or 'Voulez vous coucher avec moi ce soir'? Doesn't make them sound any smarter or even romantic. Just a little retarded, especially when they can't speak it properly," I said stumbling, "You kn-", I crashed to the grass, "Ow. You know I can speak fluent French. How cool is that? I'm pretty smart you know that? I don't deserve friends like you, who take care of me so much cause I'm so messed up in the head. Like I come across that I've got everything under control, when really- BURP – I'm falling apart. It's like that song by The 69 Eyes, except I'm not Gothic. Maybe I should be." I said struggling to keep my eyes open.

I was sprawled over Reid's legs. I was so beyond drunk that the last seven shots of Jeigermeister seemed like a fantastic idea.

"_Just like a gothic girl_

_Lost in the darken world_

_My lil´gothic girl_

_Darkerside jewel are your _

_razorcuts for real, baby" _I began to sing, slurring a little.

"Reid?" I voice in the distance called.

"Caleb? I think your sister needs to be taken home. She's starting to sing." Reid said calmly. I began to drift off to sleep.

"Dear God. I warned her about those shots."

"Well if you can lift her, I think we should call it a night."

"_Le ciel, masqué dans pourpre-bleu,  
fait le monde au-dessous d'un bois d'ébène égal."_ I mumbled sleepily.

Caleb looked at Reid, who held up his hands, "She's your sister, man. I didn't teach her to speak French."

I vaguely remembered being tucked into my own bed and giving Caleb sloppy kisses on the cheek and telling him I loved him over and over and something else along the lines of 'You're such a good brother Caleb, Sarah is so lucky to have you'.

At least that's what I was told in the morning while sipping Chai Tea with Dumplings to cure the hangover.

"It so funny. And you sad something in French. Some word that sounded like mask and blue and possibly purple."

"Oh no," I said dropping my head into my hands, "I didn't did I?"

"Yeah, you did. What was that anyway?"

"A poem"

"A what?"

"A poem, called 'The Siren' by James Chambers. I went over to France when I was 16 and met a French boy who recited it to me and wrote it out in French on this beautiful writing paper and sealed it in an envelope with those old-school wax sealer thingy's. It was so romantic that I tried to learn it, but that's all I remembered. And whenever I get drunk and feel all lovey-dovey I recite the only part of the poem I know in French."

Caleb just stared, "I know, I'm a head case. You'll get used to it." I said shaking my head.

"Speaking of which, I got you something yesterday to help you with that." He left the room and did not return for a while.

"Caleb? _CALEB"_ I heard some rummaging and he returned moments later.

"A present from me," he said walking with a large box in his hands. It was pink with a big red bow wrapped around it. I knew I was crazy when I thought I saw the box move. He set it down, "Open it".

So I did, and gasped.

Sitting before me was a tiny Boxer puppy, caramel with white chops. It was so adorable looking with those gorgeous eyes. I reached down and picked it up "Such a precious little darling aren't you?" I asked the puppy.

She, as I established, looked at me slightly scared.

"She was the last one. No-one wanted her because she was so quiet and timid. I thought she was perfect for you."

"Oh," I said covering her ears, " He's just joking my little darling. Everybody loves you, but not as much as meeee. You're too precious to be boisterous like the other doggies aren't you? Yes you are, yes you are"

Caleb knitted his eyebrows and chuckled. I melted in front of animals, regardless of whether they were little poodles to Great Danes. I set her down and giggled as she stumbled a little clumsily on her legs.

"Thanks Cal!" I said pouncing on him, giving him the best bear hug I could muster.

"That's okay. What are you going to name her?"

"I think Angel. Or maybe Lily. Or something really weird, like Saphyra or Metal."

"Why would you name your dog Metal?"

"I dunno, just got metal music on my mind."

"Is that what you do with your spare time apart from French poetry?" He asked sarcastically.

"Smartass." He laughed and knelt down to pat her.

"She looks so serene." I nodded in agreement.

" I dub thee Angel."


	15. Mad About The Boy

"Alice!", Caleb's voice reverberated through my head. I shot up in bed and gasped.

Looking around, I noticed Caleb was extremely close to my face.

"Oh my God, don't scare me like that!" I said placing a hand to my heart. "Caleb! I was having a nice dream!" I said hitting him upside the head. He clutched his ear and looked at me impishly. "That face, priceless."

"Which movie is scarier? The Ring, The Exorcist or Happy Feet?" I asked.

Reid laughed and laid his head back down, hitting the grass softly.

"Ah, Happy Feet. I'll never look at penguins the same."

I giggled. Taking a huge sigh I ponder whether this was the right time to ask the question.

"Reidy, how do you feel about coming to Australia with me?" I asked timidly.

"Huh?" He said sitting up.

"Australia. You know, down under. I have a cousin that lives in Melbourne. I really miss her, but I don't want to go alone. Please?" I pleaded.

He smiled, "Let's go." He got up.

"What now?" I asked surprised, "I was thinking like after school started."

"No time like the present." He said turning around, his arms spread out.

"Bu- but we have like a week left till school starts and I need to get supplies. We have to book plane tickets and accomodatio-"

"Leave all that to me. It will be fun. Come on. When was the last time you did something spontaneous?" He asked, interrupting me.

I sighed, "Well then, let's go."

Four hours later, Reid and I were sitting in the airport in Boston.

I was reading Vogue when he got up and began to pace. After five minutes, I set my magazine down and glared at him.

"What?" He asked defensively.

"Would you quit pacing and sit down? You're making me nervous." I said exasperated.

He sniffed and slumped into his chair.

"You know how impatient I get."

I turned to face him, "You? Impatient? That's like the understatement of the century."

I returned to the page I was reading.

"No wait, like the _universe_."

"OKAY. I get that I'm a pain in the ass. Now can we move on please? I'm getting hives from just sitting here."

"_F__light 209, please begin boarding,"_ Stated the intercom above our heads.

"Oops, that's us," I said leaping out of my seat to grab my suitcase. I had packed far more than needed, but Melbourne was a stylish place. I had ended up using half of Reid's suitcase as well.

As we walked toward the plane, I noticed Reid seemed slightly skittish, which was out of character for him.

"Reid. REID." I yelled trying to get his attention.

"Hm?" He asked distractedly.

"Are you okay? You seem…weird."

"Fine. I'm very fine. Couldn't be better."

I lifted one eyebrow and stared at him in disbelief.

"Right."

We sat down in our seats, me on the window side. Reid was once again fidgeting uncomfortably next to me. After ten long minutes, I slammed my hand down on his thigh.

He grinned at me.

"WHAT is your problem? Your like a bleepin' rabbit, bouncing around in your seat like a small child. Get it together." I said startled at my annoyance.

He laughed nervously.

"Reid- oh." I said, and understood his expression.

Then I grinned evilly, "No way. Your afraid of flying aren't you?"

"No" he said defensively.

"Yes. Yes you are," I began tickling him, "Oh yes you are. Reidy is afraid of flying."

"Cut it out Ace, people are starting to stare."

"Only at you, coz you're a scaredy cat." I giggled.

He glared at me.

"Shutting up now," I said, pretending to zip my lips shut.

Suddenly he leaned forward and kissed me.

I pulled back, confused. "Hey, what was tha-"

His lips were on mine again. They felt warm inside my mouth and I was almost comfortable.

Almost.

This was what? The third time we had kissed over the past month. I was beginning to feel uneasy.

'Ew, gross. Get a ROOM!" A small voice yelled at us. We both pulled away from each other, and looked toward the voice.

The owner was an eight year old boy, wearing a baseball cap and a superman t-shirt.

I laughed, as the kid walked away, disgusted by us.

"Okay. Well what was all that about?" I asked Reid, when the kid was out of sight.

"I love it when you obey me. You are so stubborn the rest of the time. Damn irresistible," He said, again leaning in.

"Uh-uh. No way mister. I'm single remember and so are you."

He frowned and slumped back in his chair, defeated.

I grinned in spite of myself.

Yet the way his lips felt, his hands on my neck……

Oh I couldn't do this to myself.

I grabbed my Ipod and switched it to a familiar song.

"_Crash and burn,_

_All the stars explode tonight._

_How'd you get so desperate?_

_How'd you stay alive…._

_Help me please burn the sorrow form your eyes,_

_Oh come on be alive again,_

_Don't lay down and die,_

_Hey, hey, you know what to do,_

_Oh, baby drive away,_

_To Malibu"_

I must have nodded off to sleep, because I awoke to Reid tapping me.

"Get up. We're here."

I scrambled for my stuff, but he already had it. He hauled the two suitcases with ease and I never realized how strong he was until now. I smiled like a girlfriend would after admiring how adorable her boyfriend really was.

Then reality set in. We would never be that.

"Thanks Reid."

The taxi wait was getting to be ridiculous.

I was annoyed and tired and Reid was settling down after his 'flight of death'.

We were both so over it.

"Stuff this," I said slamming my bag down. I walked over to the nearest cab, full of guys, and returned only minutes later with an empty cab.

"What the? Hey, how'd you do that?" Reid asked astonished.

I smiled, "I used my American charm."

He raised one eyebrow.

"Okay, okay. So I told them that I was having lady problems and that if I didn't get to the nearest hospital I'd give birthright on the footpath."

He grinned and threw an arm around my shoulder, "That's my girl."

We hauled our things into the cab and headed off.

"St. Kilda road thanks. So how do ya like it so far?" I asked Reid as the cab pulled out.

"It's pretty cool. Can't wait to go exploring in the city though."

"Yup, we'll do that tomorrow."

Upon arriving at my cousin Julie's house, I was exhausted.

"Alice?!" came a voice from the kitchen.

A tall blonde haired girl with tanned skin darted into the room and crushed me with a hug.

"Hey – OUCH. God woman! I do have a spine!" I cried out in pain.

She pulled away from me and giggled, "Sorry".

I turned to Reid, "She has 3 older brother's"

"Oh."

"You must be Reid," Julie said and gave him a slight hug. She winked at me over his back and I smiled disapprovingly.

"Alright, well I'll let you two get settled. My friends and I are going to this awesome club tonight, you guys are soooo coming. I have to go out, but I'll call you later?"

I nodded, "Sounds like fun."

"Alright, cya babe, bye Reid."

"I.D please?" the bouncer asked us. We pulled out our cards.

He grinned, "Americans ey? Welcome to Oz."

We entered the dimly lit club, the sound of Flukes 'Absurd' reverberating off the walls.

It was the sexiest song in my opinion so I grabbed Reid's hand and lead him to the centre of the floor. He smiled at me as I began to move.

"I love the way you dance. So sexy," he said leaning in towards me. I giggled.

"I'm serious, don't laugh," he said, his facial expression impossible to read.

I nodded, and continued to dancing.

Three hours later we were thoroughly legless and hailed a cab to my cousin's. Except we weren't the only ones in the cab.

And we weren't all happy. Anna, an 'old friend' of Reid's from America, (imagine the coincidence) happened to be at the same club as us. Now instead of him and me, those two were getting extremely close. That's when I suddenly realized.

I was beginning to actually like that shithead.

So as I stumbled into bed, I heard them laughing and stumbling around in the loungeroom. I fell asleep in a foul mood.

And when I awoke the mood had seemed to increase in intensity.

My cousin noticed this, bless her heart and immediately figured out the cause of the problem.

"Get out!" She was screaming when I was leaving the bathroom.

"But, I'm not changed!" This girl, Anna, was saying back.

"I don't care if you run around the street naked, you have to get out of my house you little whore." Julie yelled back. She was now furious that some little hoe was running around her house half-naked, and now even more pissed off because she was the root of my unhappiness.

Reid on the other hand stood in the back round watching the misery unfold. He was clearly annoyed and grumpy, telling by the look on his face.

He glanced over to me, by I instantly looked away.

Julie shoved Anna out of the door, and slammed it shut.

Reid walked over to me, but Julie stepped in front of me, "I think you should go home Reid," She said calmly.

He nodded.

Within the hour, he was gone.

I stayed at Julie's for a week, but I was positively miserable.

I was mad about the boy.


	16. Trey Indeed

Caleb had sent my car up to the Boston airport so that I could drive home. He was going to drive up here to pick me up, but I insisted that I needed a good long drive to think things out. Poor kid was concerned about my health, yet again. He could pass for my mother sometimes, I swear.

To make matters worse, I hadn't so much as spoken to Reid in a week, and as I neared Ipswich I was doing 20 kilometers over the speed limit.

"Oh damn it!" I yelled and hit the steering wheel.

I was over the speed limit, again, except this time a cop car rounded the corner.

I was in a terrible mood.

I pulled over and rested my head on the wheel.

There was a knock on the window.

I hit the roll-down button, without so much as lifting my head, and took a deep breath.

"Ma'am? Licence and registration please?"

I pulled out my wallet and handed it to him.

"Mhmm-"

"Officer," I spoke slowly, "Can you please hand me you're gun?"

He snickered "There will be no suicides in front of me today lady."

I looked up, "You've got to be kidding me. I thought you all about justice. Oh god!" I cried out and slammed my head against the wheel once again.

"Miss, you okay? You seem upset."

"Mmm, let me think. I'm fabulous. My best friend won't talk to me, I'm tired and grumpy, I feel like shit and now I'm going to get a nice big hefty fine." I mumbled.

He tapped my shoulder, an I glanced up. Oh my lord. What a honey.

His dark eyes were laughing at me, along with his plump lips and dark skin. He looked very muscular under that uniform. I smiled in spite of myself.

"Well, I don't usually do this. But since you're having a bad day, I'm gonna let you off with a warning," He said smiling at me. He was amused.

Lovely.

"And a date," He finished.

I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

"Huh? You want a date? With me? What the hell for?"  
He chuckled, a deep rumble in his throat, "I should think that's pretty obvious."

I nodded my head.

"I would love to, but I'm kind of taken." I said, sighing when I thought of him.

"Oh, well. Maybe another time then," he said smiling, clearly unperturbed.

I grimaced.

"Good day, ma'am." And he began to walk away.

I sighed, "Wait! Wait, Uh how bout tonight?"

"But I thought you we-"

"Yeah, well I lied. So 8pm, Nicky's?" I asked, suddenly delighted.

"Sounds great. See you there. Oh, and the names Trey. 8pm, Alice. Don't be late." He grinned, an irresistible smile that made me melt.

Had the car not been underneath me, I would have molded into a puddle.

Trey indeed.


	17. Nothing Alcohol Won't Cure

We arrived at Nicky's at 8pm, and already I was flighty and uncontrollable. I was just a mountain of emotions that I couldn't control myself.

Trey was enjoying himself, which was good, but my heart just wasn't in it.

"Want a drink?" he asked me.

I grinned, "Getting a minor alcohol?"

He laughed, 'Yeah well, don't tell anyone or I'll lose my job!"

Once I had a strong glass of whiskey and coke in my hand, it was off to the dance floor for me. Dare by the Gorillaz came on and I squealed.

Bumping and grinding with Trey I almost forgot about that certain someone.

That is, until he walked through the door. My heart skipped a beat.

Because guess who was on his arm.

I glared at him for an entire minute, before I decided my course of action. He glanced around the pub until his eyes rested on mine.

Naturally, I did the thing that would piss him off the most. I reached for Trey's head and kissed him.

Oh yeah, that worked.

He practically yanked Anna's arm off to get her over to the pool tables and me out of his view.

Half an hour of dancing had passed and there was still no reaction. So I decided to make my move. I excused myself from Trey for a moment, and walked over to Reid.

"Hey," I said tapping his shoulder, "Tomorrow, my house. We need to talk".

He nodded gravely, much to my surprise.

His eyes remained on mine even as I walked over to Trey and whispered in his ear that we go back to his house to 'fool around'.

Trey nodded and smiled and took my hand.

God knows how that boy heard, but in an instant he was standing in front of me, his eyes furious.

"You can't go with him, Alice," He said sternly.

"The hell I can't. He's _my_ date, Reid. Go find yours. I said we'd talk tomorrow." I replied, stepping around him.

He stopped me, "I mean it Ace. Don't go."

I leaned in close to his ear, "Make me."

What he did next was kind of unreal.

He excused himself and Trey, and I watched dumbly as they both walked over to a corner. They spoke for several minutes until finally, Trey walked over and grasped my hands.

"I would love to take you home, but I just can't. I think you know why," he said glancing over at Reid, who now looked sheepish.

Trey leaned down and kissed my cheek, "maybe another time, sweetheart."

And walked away.

I just stood there, feeling like a small child. Before long, Reid was by my side, his hand around my waist.

"Let's talk. Now" he said slowly.

I jerked out of my reverie, and narrowed my eyes dangerously.

"Oh, I don't think so. Who the hell do you think you are? Scaring my date away like that!" I poked at his shoulder, raising my voice.

He glanced around, "Ace, keep your voice down. People are looking."

I grunted, "Like that's _ever_ stopped you before,"

He stopped looking around and glared at me, "What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

I laughed bitterly, "Oh come on. You're not that dumb are you? I've seen the way you are with girls Reid. Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about."

"How I am with girls? What the fuck are you talking about Alice?" he yelled at me.

"Fuck! Don't tell me you didn't notice what was happening with us!" I yelled back.

He frowned, "Us? There is no us."

I nodded, "Yup. There is no chance of us now. Never will be because you're a little manwhore that can't seem to keep your bits in your pants."

He stepped back from me, shocked by my harsh words.

"Oh Jesus, Reid. That is hardly hurtful."

His eyes widened, "It is when you say it."

It had finally dawned on him. I turned away from him. I couldn't be near him. Couldn't see him.

But who greeted me when I did turn around? Fucking Anna.

"He's mine you know. He will always be mine. We have this connection. He's in love with me and that bother's you, doesn't it?" She was backing me into a corner.

I snickered, "Don't flatter yourself."

"Admit it. He's infatuated with me and not you. He's fucked me so many times when he thought you didn't know. He's just pretending to be your friend so that you don't kill yourself. Poor little girl, your daddy's gone and the only person you have is Reid."

My eyes narrowed.

"Who the fuck do you think you are talking about my father like that?"

Before I knew it, my fist connected with her nose. I heard a loud break and I was suddenly satisfied. I turned on my heel.

Reid stepped in front of me, "Get out of my way Reid. Fuck Anna all you want. I don't give a shit. I hope you two have retarded children."

"What?!"

"I heard the stories Reid, I chose to ignore them. But now it's all very clear. Anna told me everything."

He reached for my hand and whipped me around,

"Let me explain! We pretended to go out to make her ex jealous, but then she fell in love with me. That was a long time ago. And that night that you lost it and went crazy, I felt like crap, so I called her to come over. We had been good friends before we got involved with each other. One thing led to another and we ended up sleeping together. Seeing her in Australia was a total coincidence. That's all."

I whipped around. "That's all? THAT'S ALL?"

"Ali- OW!" I slapped him so hard my fingers stung.

"Are you freaking kidding me?!" I yelled and began to storm out of Nicky's

"So you're dick just magically fell into her by coincidence?!" I was losing it.

"Alice! Hey, where the hell you going?" Reid grabbed my arm.

"Reid get off me. I need to get out."

"Hey don't listen to that bitch. She-"

"Reid, she's right you know. I was stupid to think that this could work out. I'm messed up and I can't be close to anyone right now. Not even you."

"Alice, we are all fucked up. Get over it. I know that you lost your father and your mother, but you have to come to terms with that sooner or later. And you have to let me know where we stand. I can't deal with your daily drama. Your paranoia. Stop trying to blame everything on me. Everything that goes wrong in your life does not add up to me."

"Well, you know what? I can't fucking help it if your a WHORE. And that you can't control yourself. That your so into your self. Why don't you just marry yourself, huh? And fuck half the cheerleading team while you're at it." I was furious, tears rolling down my face.

"Fuck you Alice. I'm sick of this shit-", he began to turn and walk away.

"No fuck you, Reid. Fuck you that you're so adorable. And that your caring when you think no-ones looking," my voice began to break, "And that you're really a sweetheart deep down under all that crabbiness. That you would do anything for me, and that I can't accept it. Oh God. FUCK."

He had stopped walking and turned to face me. I was screaming, as I slumped to the grass. I was a dripping teary-eyed mess.

A loud sigh. He knelt down, "Jesus Ace. I can't be with you when you're like this. You know that I love you bu-"

"What?" I asked looking up.

"I can't handle it when you scream at me."

"No. After that."

"That I love you," he said softly. I stared at him. He really meant it. I could see it in his eyes. He stood up.

"Well, that really does make me feel better," I said and launched myself at him.

He caught me in a hug and kissed me thoroughly.

"That little hoe in there is gonna bite the dust."

"Ace, come on. You can talk the talk, but can't you walk the walk."

"Watch me," I said strutting back into Nicky's.

Reid remained outside.

He though I was just playing with him.

Minutes later, Anna stumbled out the door of Nicky's, with her skirt ripped and a swelled lip. As well as a broken nose. Alice came storming out behind her, dripping with rage.

"Yeah, that's right, YOU KEEP RUNNING!" I said triumphantly as Anna took off to her car.

I turned to Reid. "Ha-ha," doing a little victory dance.

"Jesus Ace, maybe we ought to get you on some medication."

"Nah. Nothing alcohol won't cure."

We walked back inside, but I had to do something.

"Reid," I said tapping his shoulder. He turned his attention towards me.

I smiled the sweetest smile I could muster up.

Then I punched him. Square in the jaw.

"Ow! Alice, what the hell?!" He cried out, clasping his jaw.

I laughed, but then made a serious face.

"IF you _ever_ cheat on me with that bi-otch, I will hurt you in ways you can't imagine."

He looked down at me, very seriously.

"I would never do that to you. I promise."

"Promises don't mean anything." I retorted.

"Well, mine do." He replied, and kissed me.

It was the kind of kiss that made you melt.

My knees went weak and I fell into his hold.

He laughed and picked me up, my legs wrapped around his waist.

He stared at me, "Come on, let's go home."

Hauling me into his Lexus, he turned the heating on high and took my hand. We pulled up to his house, and using the back entrance so his parents didn't know we were there, crept up to his bedroom.

I fell on the bed immediately, so tired from all the rough physical activity I had done tonight.

Although I was very proud of myself.

"Whatcha thinkin' babe?" Reid asked me from the ensuite.

"Bout' how awesome I am, beating two people up in one night."

He laughed, walking into the room, wearing only boxers.

He climbed on top of me and sat on my hips, "I always knew you had it in ya."

I laughed, "Ah well, least you know I can defend myself in a fight."

He frowned, "That won't ever be necessary, as long as I'm around."

He leant down to kiss me. I think I was falling in love with this one.

I got a feeling so alien to me that threatened to explode every time I was around him. As if was bursting with happy and excited energy.

I pulled away, "I have to get changed. I'm not sleeping in dirty bar clothes."

He smiled "Yeah you do kind of smell like a whore."

I hit him upside the head as he rolled off me, "That's not very nice. Maybe I'll go home then" I pouted.

He grabbed my hand, "No, no. Don't go home," he grabbed my waist and pulled me to him, "You can never go home. I've got you in my grasp now and I'm not ever letting go."

I giggled, "Sure I can. Bit of kung-fu and I'll be moon walking out of here."

"That's true."

I pulled out of his hold and headed toward the bathroom, "Oh wait. I don't have anything to change into."

I grimaced. His face brightened.

"I've got just the thing." He hurried into his walk-in-robe and returned holding up an old beat up Rolling Stones t-shirt.

I raised my eyebrows and smiled.

"It was my dad's back in the day."

I laughed, "I reckon!"

I grabbed it off him and changed into it. It looked really cool. I walked out and received a wolf whistle.

The shirt just covered my butt, and it was so big around the neck that it slid off one shoulder.

"Now _that_ is sexy." Reid said, patting the now pulled back sheets beside him.

I climbed in and snuggled into his chest.

"You know, I think I love you Alice Danvers."

"I think I love you too."


End file.
